In a bit of good news for the steel market, the U.S. unemployment rate slightly declined from 8.5% in December 2011 to 8.3% in January 2012, according to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 243,000 in January, primarily as a result of 257,000 new jobs in private sector areas such as professional and business services (70,000), leisure and hospitality (44,000), and manufacturing (50,000). The number of new manufacturing jobs added more than doubles the 23,000 added in December. The most recent previous months where manufacturing gained roughly 50,000 or more jobs were January 2011 (49,000) and August 1998 (142,000). Almost 154.4 million people participated in the civilian labor force, up from about 153.9 million in December, and 140.8 million people were employed, up from about 140.6 million in December.

Close to 13M Unemployed

A total of 12.8 million people were classified as unemployed in January, down 2% from about 13.1 million in December. Of these, 5.5 million, or about 43%, were long-term unemployed (27 weeks or more without a job). The remaining 7.3 million either lost a job or completed a temporary job.

Participation Rate Falls Slightly

In January, the civilian non-institutional population age 16 and older measured about 242.3 million, up from about 240.6 million in December. The civilian labor force participation rate fell slightly, however, in January from 64% in December. . Meanwhile, the employment-population ratio held steady at 58.5% and has changed little since September 2011 (58.4%).

Part-Time, Marginal, Discouraged Workers (please compare with December)

There was little month-over-month change in the number of people employed part-time for economic reasons (up 1%, from 8.1 million in December to 8.2 million in January). However, a more substantial increase occurred in the number of people marginally attached to the labor force (up 12%, from 2.5 million to 2.8 million), and discouraged (marginally attached people not currently looking for work, up 16%, from 945,000 to 1.1 million).

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics